THROUGH MY LENS: A new arm for Rawan

11:11 AM,
Sep. 7, 2013

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Written by

Amanda Davidson

I met Rawan Mubarak on my birthday back in early June, and three months later, I've come to realize that the time I got to spend with her was a true gift and a reminder to never take anything for granted.

Rawan, 9, of Damascus, Syria, has seen and endured things in her short life that I can't even imagine.

About a year and a half ago, in the beginning stages of Syria's civil war, Rawan and members of her family ran to a neighboring home as shells exploded all around them. Shrapnel tore into her torso and right arm. She was hospitalized and parts of her stomach and intestines were removed. Her right arm was ...